Virginie Ledoyen

She is a model for L'Oréal Paris who has her face splashed on billboards and in publications all over the world. Her role in The Beach made waves in Hollywood as well.

Appeal

Virginie Ledoyen is one of the finer physical specimens to come out of France, ranking up there with champagne, truffles and the Statue of Liberty. Let a glance linger and there can be no doubt that the mantle first hoisted by Bardot and Deneuve has now been placed in the trust of the ravishing Virginie.

Compatriot Sophie Marceau could try to convince us otherwise, but one look into the perfect pout of Virginie and we turn into jelly. Her innocent saucer eyes divulge a fresh youthful energy that is both infectious and desirable. The body Virginie boasts is a vision as well. Anyone who can recall her smooth entrance in the film The Beach with Leonardo DiCaprio will concur that pure feminine elegance and grace was on display in top form.

Success

Virginie has attained the pinnacle of starlet status in her native France, yet has not broken into the North American market with quite the buzz that was expected after the release of The Beach. Expectations soared due to the popularity of the book, penned by acclaimed author Alex Garland. The latter deemed Virginie to be the exact vision of who he had in mind for her character in the novel.

Although the film sagged under critical and popular pressure, the blame did not fall on her bright performance. Virginie was the best part of the dismal film, next to DiCaprio running for his life. Offers have poured in since but rather than be typecast as the foreign babe or sex object, Virginie has been content to accept more colorful roles in homegrown projects.

Virginie Ledoyen Biography

Virginie Fernandez (she later took her grandmother's maiden name, Ledoyen, as her stage name) was born November 15th, 1976 in Aubervilliers, France. Her parents worked hard to keep the family business -- a restaurant -- afloat with her mother as the manager and her father, a food salesman. From a young age, it was apparent that Virginie was destined for a job in the public eye.

She began to model as a baby and had appeared in several advertisements by the age of 3. Her first film role came at the tender age of 9 when her photograph caught the eye of an Italian director who cast her in an instant. During the same year, her parents decided to enroll Virginie in a special school for the performing arts. Two years later, and she added several stage performances to her resume as well.

dipping into cold water

When Virginie was well into her teenage years, she came to the conclusion that she was meant to act. She committed to the goal right then and there and pursued the craft with dogged determination. The break she had been looking for came in 1994 at the age of 17. Virginie was cast in the film Cold Water as a troubled adolescent.

Her performance in the film, as well as in the surprise hit Single Girl the next year, received rave reviews. In response to the latter the New York Times said that Virginie Ledoyen had a "natural screen presence." It did not take long for the casting agents to call, including one representing Woody Allen.

life's a beach

Yet Virginie did not succumb to the temptation of Hollywood until the 2000 release The Beach, a Leonardo DiCaprio vehicle adapted from the bestseller of the same name by Alex Garland. The film did not fare well at the box office but the verdict was in on Virginie, as she was hailed as a star in the making.

The beautiful brunette has not strayed from her native France since and has chosen to select her roles with care, instead of pandering to the Hollywood standard. She is set to star with Rupert Everett in the film Bon Voyage, set for release in 2003. In addition, she is under contract with L'Oréal Paris as a spokesmodel.

When Virginie is not in front of the camera lens, either on a fashion or film shoot, she is an avid reader of Dostoevsky and Henry Miller no less, promoter of several charitable causes, and a recent mother to her first child, Lilas.